Chaired by Institute Diversity Vice President Archie Ervin, the implementation committee of faculty and staff from the Office of the President, Institute Diversity, Office of the Vice Provost for Graduate Education and Faculty Development (VPGEFD), and Human Resources provided updates on its progress to implement the 11 Gender Equity Initiatives. Quarterly updates will continue to be released until the end of the 2017-18 academic year.

As part of a two-year implementation process, the initiatives are grouped into four impact areas: hiring, promotion, and tenure; professional and leadership development; leadership appointments; and recognition and increased visibility of the Institute’s commitment to gender equity.

“As we enter the last six months of implementation, it is imperative that we continue to support gender equity programs and initiatives moving forward,” commented Ervin. “We are committed to transforming the culture as we collectively work toward modeling inclusive excellence at Georgia Tech.”

These implementation updates (not ranked by priority) encompass:

Impact Area 1: Hiring, Promotion, and Tenure

1. Implicit Bias Workshops – Offered more than 25 workshops to more than 400 faculty members since fall 2015 and secured four additional trainers to facilitate upcoming workshops. Institute Diversity and the ADVANCE Program, in collaboration with VPGEFD, are providing additional workshops this spring.

2. Search Guidelines – Developing an application tracking system for faculty through VPGEFD and Human Resources and refining interim search guidelines to create one applicant funnel at Tech pending the rollout of the OneUSG system.

3. Processes and Pathways to Advancement and Promotion – Continuing to promulgate the approved changes to the Faculty Handbook by the Faculty Senate that outlined and clarified new promotion guidelines for academic professionals and lecturers, and led to the promotion of more than 15 faculty members this year; and continuing to offer the following programs:

Emerging Leaders Program – Engaging 16 tenured faculty as the second cohort of the program, which is offered by the Office of the Provost. Faculty members from the first cohort have been selected for leadership positions at the Institute.

Inclusive Leaders Academy – Eighty-seven staff leaders graduated as the first cohort in 2017, and Institute Diversity’s Staff Diversity, Inclusion, and Engagement will keep the nomination period for the second cohort open until December 14.

Leading Women@Tech – Twenty-three women staff leaders completed the Leading Women@Tech program this year, and Institute Diversity will open the application period for the third cohort in 2018.

4. Salary Equity Studies – Launching a staff salary equity study from the Office of Institutional Research and Planning and Human Resources and evaluating the equity study findings.

6. Family-Friendly Programming and Policies – Human Resources and Institute Diversity are continuing to revisit recommendations from the Task Force on Family-Friendly Policies. Additionally, VPGEFD re-released the updated Active Service Modified Duties policy and proposed probationary period extension changes to the Faculty Handbook this year.

Impact Area 3: Leadership Appointments

7. Inclusive and Open Processes for Appointments – Institute Diversity and VPGEFD adjusted the stipends for ADVANCE Professors and revised the Regents’ Professors selection process at Georgia Tech.

Impact Area 4: Recognition and Increased Visibility

8. Reporting System Awareness – Updated and finalized the “Discriminatory Behavior/Harassment” report type language under the “Student-Related Matters” and “Employee Matters” categories within EthicsPoint, and Institute Communications and Institute Diversity will announce the EthicsPoint portal updates to the campus community next month.

11. Gender Equity Data – Continuing to update diversity and equity dashboard content from the Office of Institutional Research and Planning and Institute Diversity. Additionally, Institute Diversity and Academic Effectiveness administered the 2017 Climate Assessment Surveys to faculty and staff last month, and students will receive a climate assessment survey email during spring semester 2018.

“The Inclusive Leaders Academy taught me what it takes to be a brave leader, how to embrace vulnerability, and that we all have unconscious biases,” said Melissa Arceneaux, financial manager II for Procurement and Business Services. “Anyone who wants to foster an inclusive environment should participate in this program.”